Pagosa Folk, Dolores River and Lucky Tubb  

by Chris Aaland
 

Pack the coolers with Mexican Loggers, elk steaks for the grill and don’t forget the kids, Shelly, as the festival season is officially here! Pagosa Folk ’n’ Bluegrass turns 10 years old this weekend and brings more than a dozen rising stars in the folk and bluegrass world and a legendary Celtic group to its stage.

If you like discovering talented new bands, then this year’s lineup is for you. Sure, even those with limited knowledge of contemporary Irish music have heard of Solas, the veteran band that headlines Saturday night. And if you followed newgrass groups like Leftover Salmon, the Punch Brothers and the John Cowan Band in the past decade, you surely know of banjo wizard Noam Pikelny, who’ll wrap the whole shin-dig up on Sunday evening with Nashville Bluegrass Band alumnus Stuart Duncan. But it’s the undercard that ties the whole thing together. Regional favorites include Rebecca Frazier & Hit and Run, Finnders & Youngberg and Trout Steak Revival. Some of the others highlights that you may not have heard of include folk trio Red Molly, Tarheel State acoustic duo Mandolin Orange, Canadian bluegrassers the Slocan Ramblers (they’ll also play live on KSUT at 11 a.m. Friday) and the lively Michigan string band Lindsay Lou & the Flatbellys.

The Pimps of Joytime headline the Dolores River Festival on Saturday.

Camping is the other reason to head over to Reservoir Hill. The campfire jam – lit this year with propane rather than wood fires because some Einstein buried his coals last fall, starting a small wildfire the day after Four Corners Folk Festival – is truly spectacular. Great food, tasty beverages and neighborly hospitality abound in the campground. I recommend Dan Peha’s campsite for Friday afternoon margaritas and a lively pick.

This one kicks off a massive June-through-September run that will include Palisade Roots & Bluegrass (June 12-14), Telluride Bluegrass (June 18-21), The Ride (July 11-12), RockyGrass (July 24-26), Telluride Jazz (July 31-Aug. 2), Folks Fest (Aug. 14-16), Four Corners Folk Festival (Sept. 4-6) and Telluride Blues & Brews (Sept. 18-20). I plan to do six at least of these. You should, too.

If you head west Saturday, you can take part in the Dolores River Festival at Joe Rowell Park on the outskirts of town. Pimps of Joytime bring the New Orleans/Brooklyn funk to headline the festival from 6:30-10 p.m. Earlier acts on the main stage include Cold River City, the Porter Draw, Afrobeatniks and Carute Roma; additional local groups play the side stage throughout the day. Gates open at 10 a.m. with plenty of free parking. The music is just half the fun, with river activities all day long. It’s even dog-friendly for well-behaved and leashed pooches.

His last name is Tubb; his first, Lucky. You need to know little more other than Lucky Tubb & the Modern Day Troubadours play Crash Music at the historic Aztec Theatre at 7 p.m. tonight (Thurs., June 4) … that and the fact that he’s the great nephew of the original Texas troubadour, Ernest Tubb. Lucky plays hard honky-tonk in a way that would have made Ernie proud. Lucky’s latest CD, “Del Gaucho,” is worth checking out even if you don’t venture down south on a weeknight … but trust me, the drive will be well worth it.

The Durango Arts Center hosts “In Bloom,” an original stage adaptation of “Circe,” a chapter from James Joyce’s novel Ulysses, tonight through Saturday. Directed by Aaron Beck, who has worked with the Salt Fire Circus, the production is billed as a mesmerizing spectacle of color and sound. The subject matter itself was quite risqué at the time of its release. Banned for decades, “Ulysses” saw more than 500 copies burned by the U.S. Postal Service.

First Friday means another firkin tapped at Steamworks. This time around, it’s called “There Gose Hernandez,” in honor of El Moro bartender Dave Hernandez – a fellow who is more than just a mild aficionado of brews. “Dave was obsessed with this unique style of beer, one, by many accounts, that has been lost in the mix of newer popular beer styles,” said Steamworks director of brewing operations Ken Martin. The “Gose” (pronounced go-za) style is a top-fermented beer that originated in Goslar, Germany. It is brewed with at least 50 percent of the grain being malted wheat and features lemon tartness, herbal characteristic and strong saltiness. Coriander, sea salt and pear concentrate help secure these dominant flavors. As always, the firkin gets tapped at 3 p.m. Friday.

Telluride Jazz might be nearly two months away, but that doesn’t prohibit the Sheridan Opera House from bringing in world-class jazz during early June. New Orleans second line royalty, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, takes the Sheridan stage on Tuesday. Under the direction of Ben Jaffe, son of Allan and Sandra Jaffe, who founded the legendary music venue in the French Quarter in 1961, the group has played worldwide from Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center to the courts of British royals and the King of Thailand.

Moe’s lineup this week is highlighted by Funked Up Fridays with the Mountain Top Pocket Pickers at 7 p.m. and First Saturdays with dancing to DJs Squooze and Ralphsta on Saturday.

Elsewhere: Papa Otis & the Animas City Seven play James Ranch’s burger-and-show concert at 5 p.m. tonight (Thurs., June 4); the Kirk James Blues Band works twice on Saturday, first at the Women’s Resource Center’s Men Who Grill event at 11 a.m. at Buckley Park, then at 7 p.m. at the Hideaway Grill at Vallecito; the Mancos Valley Distillery hosts the bluegrassy Durango band the Outskirts at 8 p.m. Saturday; Pete Giuliani’s busy weekend includes a date with Ross Douglas at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Animas River Café at the Double Tree Hotel and a pair of solo, acoustic shows at 6:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday as Mesa Verde’s Farview Lodge.

This week’s Top Shelf list is in honor of Sepp Blatter, the Godfatheresque crook who ran FIFA since 1998. He resigned Tuesday amidst international investigations of wire fraud, racketeering and money laundering – not to mention suspected bribes from Russia and Qatar to land the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, respectively. My favorite comedian, John Oliver, hinted last Sunday that if Blatter were forced to resign, he’d consume this delicious meal of products from FIFA sponsors:

1. Everything on McDonald’s Dollar Menu.

2. A Bud Light Lime.

Yuck.

I’m lovin’ it! Email me at chrisa@gobrainstorm.net. Email me at chrisa@gobrainstorm.net.